Reflections
by juhninja
Summary: “But instead, all the hurtful words people had said to me accumulated in the back of my mind, and stayed there. When I heard what Ron said today, it just broke through the barriers, and all the emotions I’ve been holding in for years finally exploded.”


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Luna Lovegood stood at the edge of the lake, staring down at the small waves that met her feet at the shore. The sun was just about to meet the horizon, making the blue sky fade into orange, red, and yellows, that would eventually fade into black, with twinkling stars and a moon brightening up the night. She sighed, and picked up a stone in the sand. She attempted to make it skip, but failed. The stone was swallowed by the deep water, disturbing the calm of the lake with ripples that didn't seem to stop forming. Her eyes followed the first ripple as the circle grew bigger, moving out across the lake. She looked down into the clear lake, staring into her reflection's eyes, puffy and red, instead of its usually dazed state, watching as the tears began to form, finally blurring her vision of her mirrored image.

* * *

Why did Ron have to say such awful things about her? She hadn't done anything to him. _"She's so odd," _she heard him say at the Quidditch field while on a break from practice as she walked in to say 'hello'. _"She's a joke! She's Loony Lovegood. I mean, what the bloody hell is a Crumple-Horned Snorkack?" _She stopped and hid by a post when she heard people erupt in laughter. It wasn't unusual to catch people talking about her, but it was heart wrenching to hear it over and over. It did get quite tiresome, and depressing. Luna could only take so much for so long. She really had enough of it. She finally broke. She walked gracefully from behind the post over to where the group of her laughing classmates stood. She watched several pairs of eyes widen at the sight of her, and she just continued walking calmly, barefoot.

Ron seemed confused, as he noticed his friends staring at something over his shoulder. He turned fully around. No wonder his friends were gawking! He saw Luna walk towards him, and he gulped. She stopped a couple feet away from him, and stared up at him because he was so tall. She looked into his eyes and said, "_Thanks, Ron_," and ran away from the scene, holding in the screaming tears that desperately needed to come out.

* * *

She wiped away the tears that had fallen, and surveyed her reflection in the darkening lake. Luna looked up. The red blazing sun was almost out of sight as she looked up to watch the remainder of the daylight fade into night. When the sun had completely gone, and when the moon soon took its rightful place in the sky, she looked again at her reflection. It seemed different now; more contrasted with the dark lake as the moonlight brightened up her pale face and hair. She glanced up at the twinkling stars in the night sky, and listened to the wind blow past her, swaying her long hair in the process, then looked down again. Luna took a step forward into the lake, standing ankle deep in freezing cold water. She heard grass crackle behind her, but continued to stare at her reflection. She saw two speckles of green, and fuzzy black hair appear over her right shoulder in her reflection. Her heart skipped a beat. "Hello, Harry," she said to his reflection as he drew nearer. She stepped out of the water, back to the shore where the calm waves met her feet.

"Hi, Luna," he said softly, looking at Luna through her reflection. "Beautiful night, isn't it?"

She nodded, biting back more tears that began to cloud her vision. Why did he have to be the one to find her? Luna wiped the moisture from her eyes with the back of her hand. Was he here to apologize for Ron? Or was he here to ridicule her? She shut her eyes, and shook her head. The latter didn't seem too probable. "Harry, what are you doing here?" she asked, still to his reflection.

"I'm here to see if you were all right," he said, taking a step closer to Luna. She sighed.

"I'm perfectly fine, Harry," she said. She hadn't turned around yet. She felt that if she did, he'd disappear like everyone who she cared about in her life, besides her father.

Luna saw Harry blink, unconvinced by her statement as he took another step forward. Her heart was thumping wildly in her chest. "You're obviously not 'pefectly fine,'" he said sadly. "I heard what Ron said, and it wasn't entertaining in the slightest. I saw the pain in your eyes when you ran away from the Quidditch field."

She gasped, but didn't hesitate. "I know I'm not okay, Harry, but if I believe I am, I will be, eventually," she said quietly. She continued to stare at their reflections, her eyes watering, but not enough to blur her vision. She could handle this. She had before.

"That doesn't usually work, Luna," he replied. He was right beside her, looking at her face. "Why do you take all this crap from other people? And how do you do it so calmly?"

"I take it because it's the only thing I can do," she said, not sounding Luna-like. She stared across the lake. "My whole time here at Hogwarts, I've had to take everything people said about me because I didn't know what else to do. I took everything they said, and built a wall around my heart so no more mean and prejediced words would make it there. It would simply go through one ear and out of the other." She let out a sob, and the tears flowed full force. "But instead, all the hurtful words people had said to me accumulated in the back of my mind, and stayed there. When I heard what Ron said today, it just broke through the barriers, and all the emotions I've been holding in for years finally exploded." Luna fell to the sand, weeping. "I promised myself I wouldn't let it get to me, but Ron proved even my supposed friends can judge me."

Harry fell to the ground after Luna, holding her in his arms, letting her sob. He rocked her back and forth, hoping it would calm her down. He held his cheek against her hair. Luna wrapped her arms around Harry, grateful for human contact. She didn't feel as cold as before, but still as broken. She moved her face against Harry's chest, sobbing. She calmed down after several minutes, and just sat with her arms wrapped around Harry as he held her. He continued rocking her, and said after a while, "Not everyone is hurtful towards you Luna. I try my best to understand you, and be a good friend to you. You seem to be the only one who can understand me at the moment." He took his hand, and lightly grabbed Luna's chin so she could look at him. He smiled. "I'm glad you can."

_So he really was there, _she thought. _He's real._

Luna smiled weakly, and moved her face away from Harry. She turned her body a bit, facing the lake again, still sitting with Harry. "Do you know why I look at myself in the lake outside rather than a mirror in the confines of my room?" She felt Harry shake his head. "Its too real in a mirror. I feel vain looking in the mirror. Everything stays still, unless you move, then your mirrored image moves with you. The lake does the same, but its different. Its like seeing yourself from a different perspective. The waters moves, the sea life moves, everything in the lake moves. The waves and ripples add effects to the reflected image, and its different everytime you look in the lake. Depending on the time of day, the reflection can change. The scenery behind you can change. I'd like to see the world from the other side of the lake reflection, to see if it has the same effect." She sighed. "I didn't want to look at you earlier."

"Why not?" he asked, confused.

"I was afraid that you weren't real," she said with a small smile on her face. "I thought the lake was playing tricks on me."

"I'm real, Luna," he said, holding onto Luna more tightly. "I'm not going to leave you."

She sighed again, content with the currect situation. She leaned back into Harry's chest. "You're a great friend, Harry."

She felt him stiffen. "What's wrong?" Luna asked, concerned. "Are you cold? We could go back inside."

"'No," he replied quickly. He softened his voice. "Its just…" He stopped, and exhaled.

"You don't have to tell me if you're not comfortable," she said, turning so she could look into his green eyes again.

"Its not that I'm not comfortable, Luna," he whispered. "Its just that…" He paused, and held onto Luna tighter again. "We're friends, right?" She nodded, worried. "Well, its just that for a while now, I haven't thought of you in that way." Luna held her breath, and her pulse pounded in her eardrums. Why was he doing this to her? She stood up, and stepped away from his hold.

"I think I've heard enough, Harry," she said softly, yet annoyed. "Save it, please. I don't need anymore emotional pain inflicted on me tonight." She ran, still barefoot, quietly crying all the way inside the school.

"Luna!" Harry ran after her, wanting to explain the rest to her. He needed to. "Wait!"

She ran up the corridors the led to the Ravenclaw common room. She pushed past people, just wanting to the heartache to end. _Now I've got no one,_ she thought. She sobbed, and the tears flowed down harder. She could barely see. She wiped the tears out of her eyes, and kept running. Luna heard Harry's stomping feet run after her. What was he doing?

"Stop!" he called, still running. "Luna, just let me explain!"

She stopped abruptly and kept her feet solid on the ground as Harry slightly bumped into her. She looked up into his eyes through his glasses. "What's there to explain, Harry?" she whispered out of breath, as tears continued to fall down her face. "You've explained it all haven't you?" She almost fell to the ground. _No, you have to be strong until you get to the dorm._ She used all her strength to stay standing. Luna gazed into his eyes for another short moment, and turned to run again. She was so close to the common room!

Harry grabbed her by the waist before she got away. He spun her around to face him, and placed both his hands on her waist. He stared into her silver eyes, red and puffy from crying, tears forming, leaned down and whispered, "I really like you, Luna."

She gasped. That triggered all time to stop. To them, there wasn't anyone else but them standing in the middle of a hallway. People stopped to watch the scene unfold before them. Slytherins glared. Gryffindors stared quizzically. Hufflepuffs smiled. Ravenclaws smirked. "Really?" she said, breathless. Her pulse seemed to get louder in her ears, but she could hear Harry's deep voice so clearly.

"Yes," he whispered, smiling. He cupped Luna's cheek with his hand, using his thumb to wipe away the stray tears that spilled from her eyes. "You're amazing."

Luna smiled brightly, and laughed. She wrapped her arms around Harry, hugging him tightly, never wanting to let go. She pulled back, stood on her tip-toes and leaned into Harry right ear. "I really like you, too, Harry." She leaned back again, wanting to see the look on his face.

His eyes widened, and his mouth opened. Luna laughed at his loss of composure. "You look so silly!" she said her dreamy voice, giggling. She moved her hand under Harry's chin to close his mouth. She went to remove her hand, but Harry stopped her by grabbing hold of her wrist in the air.

Harry leaned in closer, holding Luna's silver eyed gaze with his own emerald, his pulse ringing in his ears, determined to do what he had been wanting to do for ages. As his own lips got closer to the target of her plump lips, she slowly closed her eyes, and leaned in the rest of the way.

Slightly chapped lips met full, soft lips, savoring the feeling of the precious moment. Both pairs of eyes were shut as lips moved to a slow, steady rhythm. Being human, they both needed air to function. They broke apart, breathing heavily, both thorough red in the face. They were still standing so close, almost touching. Their chests moved up and down erratically. Both their pulses were still pounding, but they didn't seem as loud as before, not that they were paying any attention.

No words were spoken for a few moments as their breathing gradually slowed to a normal rate. The red stayed on their still grinning pale faces.

Finally, Harry broke the silence.

"So, Luna," he said seriously, losing the grin on his face.

Luna was frightened for a moment. "Yes, Harry?" she replied, uncertain as to what was going to happen next. Her smile faded as Harry's brow furrowed.

He spoke. "Luna, you know I like you, and from what you've told me, you like me, too. I was wondering if you'd do me the honor of being," he broke off suddenly, looking into her silver eyes, hopeful. Luna's heart skipped a beat. He continued nervously, "my girlfriend?"

She smiled brightly, and her eyes twinkled. "Oh, yes!" Luna said dreamily. "Of course, Harry. I'd love to be your girlfriend."

Harry wrapped his arms around Luna, hugging her tightly. She welcomed the warmth, excited about the recent events. Harry pulled away slowly. "You need to get to your dorm, Luna," he said, seriously. "May I walk you to your common room?"

Luna sighed happily. "That'd be lovely." Harry grabbed his girlfriend's hand, slowly intertwining their fingers together. On the way to the Ravenclaw tower, they passed by a full length mirror. Luna stopped Harry suddenly and stood in front of it. She observed the reflection, every detail of the couple in the mirror. _Is this real?_ She asked herself. _Am I dreaming? I seem to be doing that a lot. Had it not been an hour ago that I had been crying, looking into my reflection's eyes? _

Harry interrupted her thoughts, looking down on Luna's concentrated face. "Is there something wrong, Luna?" he asked softly.

She looked at Harry, then to their entwined fingers. She glanced at the reflection, then back at Harry. "Everything's grand, Harry," she said, smiling. She paused to look at their reflection again. Harry had not stopped to look at the reflection. He had only been looking at her. She blushed. "I'm really lucky to have you," she said, sighing.

Harry grinned. "I'm the lucky one, Luna. Trust me." He looked into the mirror, finally, and observed the reflection. Harry leaned down towards Luna's ear. He whispered, "I'll always be here for you. Remember that." He stepped back, still holding her hand. Luna blushed scarlet as they walked the rest of the way to the Ravenclaw tower.

They hugged when they stopped in front of the portrait, ignoring the odd glances and stares people gave them. "Goodnight, Luna," Harry whispered in her ear. "Ignore the comments people are sure to make. They don't mean a thing. Don't let them break you. I'm here for you."

They pulled away. Luna looked into Harry's green eyes. "Thanks, Harry," she said, softly. "I'll remember that. I'll see you in the morning."

Harry observed Luna as she walked through the portrait, looking back every so often to glance at Harry. When she was out of sight, Harry sighed happily. "Finally, something goes right in my life," he said out loud as he walked down the corridor.

Luna looked at herself in the mirror of the bathroom later that night. Something was different about looking in an actual mirror, as she hated to do so before. It mirrored her exact image. She would have seen the flaws she had, had it been another night, but she could only look into her eyes, noticing a slight difference in the dreamy silver gaze she had. The sadness faded completely. Her eyes were no longer cloudy. She still appeared in a dreamy state, but she was finally happy.

She hoped it would stay that way forever more.

**Fin.**

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